Validating intramyocardial bone marrow stem cell therapy in combination with coronary artery bypass grafting, the PERFECT Phase III randomized multicenter trial: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND For the last decade continuous efforts have been made to translate regenerative cell therapy protocols in the cardiovascular field from 'bench to bedside'. Successful clinical introduction, supporting safety, and feasibility of this new therapeutic approach, led to the initiation of the German, Phase III, multicenter trial - termed the PERFECT trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00950274), in order to evaluate the efficacy of surgical cardiac cell therapy on left ventricular function. METHODS/DESIGN The PERFECT trial has been designed as a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled, multicenter trial, analyzing the effect of intramyocardial CD 133(+) bone marrow stem cell injection in combination with coronary artery bypass grafting on postoperative left ventricular function. The trial includes patients aged between 18 and 79 years presenting with a coronary disease with indication for surgical revascularization and reduced global left ventricular ejection fraction as assessed by cardiac magnet resonance imaging. The included patients are treated in the chronic phase of ischemic cardiomyopathy after previous myocardial infarction. DISCUSSION Patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting in combination with intramyocardial CD133+ cell injection will have a higher LV ejection fraction than patient who undergo CABG alone, measured 6 months after the operation. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00950274.